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Most Popular Online Nursing Doctor's Degree Schools

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2023 Most Popular Online Nursing Doctor's Degree Schools

173 Colleges
$115,233 Avg Salary

Nursing is the most popular major in the United States with 322,592 degrees and certificates handed out in 2020-2021.

There are so many nursing programs in today's world that it can tough to figure out which one is the right one for you. With more and more schools offering online options, you could even register for a great program on the other side of the country. On top of that, there are a considerable number of trade schools that offer fast-track entry to many fields.

The Most Popular Online Nursing Doctor's Degree Schools ranking is one of many tools that Nursing Degree Search has developed to help you make your educational decision. Our analysis looked at 173 schools in the United States to see which online doctor's degree programs were the most popular for nursing students. To create this ranking we looked at how many students graduated from schools with online programs.

The following schools top our list of the Most Popular Online Nursing Doctor's Degree Colleges.

Our 2023 rankings named Chamberlain University - Illinois the most popular online school in the United States for nursing students working on their doctor’s degree. Chamberlain - Illinois is a fairly large private for-profit school located in the large suburb of Addison.

Women make up 93% of the nursing majors at the school.

Read full report on Nursing at Chamberlain University - Illinois

#2

Grand Canyon University

Phoenix, AZ

A rank of #2 on this year’s list means Grand Canyon University is a great place for nursing students working on their online doctor’s degree. Grand Canyon University is a very large private for-profit school located in the large city of Phoenix.

Women make up 90% of the nursing majors at the school.

Full Nursing at Grand Canyon University Report

The in-demand online doctor’s degree programs at Frontier Nursing University helped the school earn the #4 place on this year’s ranking of the best nursing schools in the United States. Located in the rural area of Hyden, Frontier Nursing University is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

Women make up 92% of the nursing majors at the school.

Read More…

#5

Capella University

Minneapolis, MN

A rank of #5 on this year’s list means Capella University is a great place for nursing students working on their online doctor’s degree. Capella University is a very large private for-profit school located in the large city of Minneapolis.

Of the 171 students majoring in nursing at Capella University, 6% are male and 94% are female.

Read More…

With a ranking of #6, University of South Alabama did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for nursing students working on their online doctor’s degree. USA is a large public school located in the city of Mobile.

Women make up 92% of the nursing majors at the school.

Read full report on Nursing at University of South Alabama

#7

Brandman University

Irvine, CA

Brandman University ranked #7 on this year’s Most Popular Online Nursing Doctor’s Degree Schools list. Located in the city of Irvine, Brandman is a private not-for-profit school with a medium-sized student population.

About 84% of the students majoring in nursing at the school are women while 16% are male.

Read More…

#8

Samford University

Birmingham, AL

Samford University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular online places for nursing students to get a doctor’s degree. It came in at #8 on the list. Located in the large suburb of Birmingham, Samford is a private not-for-profit school with a moderately-sized student population.

Of the 129 students majoring in nursing at Samford, 11% are male and 89% are female.

Read full report on Nursing at Samford University

University of Alabama at Birmingham did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular online places for nursing students to get a doctor’s degree. It came in at #9 on the list. UAB is a very large public school located in the midsize city of Birmingham.

Of the 98 students majoring in nursing at UAB, 27% are male and 73% are female.

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University of North Carolina at Greensboro did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular online places for nursing students to get a doctor’s degree. It came in at #10 on the list. Located in the large city of Greensboro, UNC Greensboro is a public college with a fairly large student population.

Women make up 80% of the nursing majors at the school.

Read full report on Nursing at University of North Carolina at Greensboro

#11

Northern Kentucky University

Highland Heights, KY

Northern Kentucky University landed the #11 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular online doctor’s degree nursing programs. NKU is a fairly large public school located in the large suburb of Highland Heights.

Women make up 87% of the nursing majors at the school.

Read full report on Nursing at Northern Kentucky University

Maryville University of Saint Louis ranked #12 on this year’s Most Popular Online Nursing Doctor’s Degree Schools list. Located in the suburb of Saint Louis, Maryville U is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.

Of the 77 students majoring in nursing at Maryville U, 9% are male and 91% are female.

Read full report on Nursing at Maryville University of Saint Louis

#13

Chatham University

Pittsburgh, PA

With a ranking of #13, Chatham University did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for nursing students working on their online doctor’s degree. Located in the city of Pittsburgh, Chatham is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

About 89% of the students majoring in nursing at the school are women while 11% are male.

Read More…

#14

University of North Florida

Jacksonville, FL

University of North Florida came in at #14 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Online Nursing Doctor’s Degree Schools ranking. Located in the city of Jacksonville, UNF is a public school with a large student population.

About 86% of the students majoring in nursing at the school are women while 14% are male.

Full Nursing at University of North Florida Report

#15

University of Florida

Gainesville, FL

University of Florida did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular online places for nursing students to get a doctor’s degree. It came in at #15 on the list. Located in the midsize city of Gainesville, UF is a public college with a fairly large student population.

Of the 79 students majoring in nursing at UF, 8% are male and 92% are female.

Full Nursing at University of Florida Report

#16

Purdue University Global

Indianapolis, IN

Purdue University Global came in at #16 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Online Nursing Doctor’s Degree Schools ranking. Purdue University Global is a very large public school located in the small city of Indianapolis.

Women make up 97% of the nursing majors at the school.

Read full report on Nursing at Purdue University Global

Virginia Commonwealth University came in at #17 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Online Nursing Doctor’s Degree Schools ranking. VCU is a very large public school located in the medium-sized city of Richmond.

Women make up 67% of the nursing majors at the school.

Read More…

University of Massachusetts Amherst landed the #18 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular online doctor’s degree nursing programs. Located in the suburb of Amherst, UMass Amherst is a public school with a fairly large student population.

Of the 62 students majoring in nursing at UMass Amherst, 15% are male and 85% are female.

Read full report on Nursing at University of Massachusetts Amherst

#19

East Carolina University

Greenville, NC

With a ranking of #19, East Carolina University did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for nursing students working on their online doctor’s degree. ECU is a fairly large public school located in the city of Greenville.

About 92% of the students majoring in nursing at the school are women while 8% are male.

Read full report on Nursing at East Carolina University

#20

University of Kansas

Lawrence, KS

University of Kansas came in at #20 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Online Nursing Doctor’s Degree Schools ranking. KU is a fairly large public school located in the city of Lawrence.

About 81% of the students majoring in nursing at the school are women while 19% are male.

Read full report on Nursing at University of Kansas

With a ranking of #21, University of Central Florida did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for nursing students working on their online doctor’s degree. UCF is a fairly large public school located in the large suburb of Orlando.

About 91% of the students majoring in nursing at the school are women while 9% are male.

Read More…

University of Missouri - Kansas City ranked #21 on this year’s Most Popular Online Nursing Doctor’s Degree Schools list. UMKC is a large public school located in the city of Kansas City.

Women make up 81% of the nursing majors at the school.

Read full report on Nursing at University of Missouri - Kansas City

#21

University of Iowa

Iowa City, IA

University of Iowa came in at #21 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Online Nursing Doctor’s Degree Schools ranking. Iowa is a very large public school located in the small city of Iowa City.

Of the 51 students majoring in nursing at Iowa, 18% are male and 82% are female.

Read More…

With a ranking of #24, The University of Texas at Arlington did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for nursing students working on their online doctor’s degree. Located in the city of Arlington, UT Arlington is a public school with a very large student population.

Of the 50 students majoring in nursing at UT Arlington, 6% are male and 94% are female.

Read More…

South University’s online programs did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular online places for nursing students to get a doctor’s degree. It came in at #25 on the list. South University's online programs is a medium-sized private for-profit school located in the medium-sized city of Savannah.

Full Nursing at South University’s online programs Report

Additional Noteworthy Schools

Here are some additional great schools for online Nursing students that almost earned our Most Popular Online Nursing Doctor's Degree Schools award.

Rank College Location
27 Old Dominion University Norfolk, VA
27 Bradley University Peoria, IL
29 Wilmington University New Castle, DE
29 University of Alabama in Huntsville Huntsville, AL
31 American Sentinel University Aurora, CO
32 Touro University Nevada Henderson, NV
33 Wilkes University Wilkes-Barre, PA
34 University of Michigan - Flint Flint, MI

View the Most Popular Online Nursing Doctor's Degree Schools for a specific region near you.

Region
Southeast
New England
Rocky Mountains
Plains States
Middle Atlantic
Far Western US
Southwest
Great Lakes

Nursing Focus Areas

Major Annual Graduates
Registered Nursing 266,651
Family Practice Nurse/Nursing 16,104
Nursing Administration 9,838
Nursing Practice 7,992
Other Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing 5,092
Nursing Science 4,600
Psychiatric/Mental Health Nurse/Nursing 2,287
Adult Health Nurse/Nursing 2,021
Nurse Anesthetist 1,936
Public Health/Community Nurse/Nursing 1,883
Critical Care Nursing 773
Geriatric Nurse/Nursing 563
School Nursing 553
Nurse Midwife/Nursing Midwifery 509
Clinical Nurse Leader 444
Clinical Nurse Specialist 419
Perioperative/Operating Room and Surgical Nurse/Nursing 331
Maternal/Child Health and Neonatal Nurse/Nursing 181
Occupational and Environmental Health Nursing 57
Emergency Room/Trauma Nursing 53
Palliative Care Nursing 14
Forensic Nursing 14

Related Major Annual Graduates
Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants 84,274

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 26 schools only.

  • The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of the rest of our data about colleges.
  • Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
  • Credit for the banner image above goes to Aleksahgabrielle.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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